A First Step Toward Socialized Medicine?

Heritage Foundation Vice President for Domestic and Economic Policy Studies, Stuart Butler, Ph.D., will be at kaisernetwork.org today at 1:30 p.m. answering questions about the presidential candidates health care policy plans. Kaiser makes the following pitch:

A number of proposals to expand health insurance coverage — including those put forward by leading Democratic candidates for President — would allow people to enroll in a publicly-sponsored health plan, potentially competing side-by-side with private insurance plans. The next kaisernetwork.org Ask the Experts live webcast will examine this idea, looking at such questions as: Is Medicare a model for such a plan? What gaps in the current insurance system would it address? Is it an appropriate role for government? How would it affect health care costs and spending? Could it, in effect, lead to a single payer system?